I thought it might be fun to do a little breakdown of character names. Because some of my characters come directly from the Hebrew Bible and some are completely made up, their names have a variety of origins. I hope you find this kind of interesting? Enjoy!

Holland, My Heart

Holland (Ruth)

I actually named this character Hannah at first. I had written much of the dialogue when my write-or-die BFF pointed out that if I named her Hannah, I’d never be able to write about Hannah in 1 Samuel. Oh!

So I wanted to find another H name because I liked how Naomi kept calling her “my heart”. Somewhere along the line, I decided her family name would be Amster and her young mother would have not looked very long for a name to go with Amster. So Holland it was. Of course, now that I have named my character Holland, I hear her name everywhere. Most notably, Tyler Hynes’s new Hallmark Movies & Mysteries holiday movie co-star Holland Roden. If she wants to volunteer to play Holland Gallagher in a screen adaptation, I will not be mad about it! She was great in It’s Time for Him to Come Home for Christmas.

Kai (Boaz)

From the moment I first started envisioning Boaz, he was two things: huge and Pacific Islander. I met a youth pastor named Kai’ipo when I was in 10th grade and he was dreamy. So, I borrowed his first name and made it into Kai Ipu’s full name.

He says EYE-pea-YOU—like the acronym it is—instead of EE-puu, like his surname. The distinction sends my busy brain down the rabbit hole of imagining twenty-year-old Kai dreaming in his dorm room of a business advisory firm and what to call it. Innovated Processes Unlimited. After himself. Bold. Just short of obnoxious. Wait. What are we talking about?
—Holland in Holland, My Heart

Naomi (Naomi!)

I couldn’t change this name from the biblical. I never even considered another option.

Ximena (Orpah)

Many years ago, I had a student I adored whose name was Ximena. Because of that amazing young lady, it has always been a name I associate with the most competent woman in the room.

Aidan and Ethan (Mahlon and Chilion)

I went through lists and lists of twin baby boy names until I found this pairing. I wanted them to sound preppy and Southern. They’re probably my favorite names in the whole book. Is that weird?

Elias (Elimelech)

This was a no-brainer.

Zahra

I love baby name websites. I found Zahra on one. I just like the way it sounds. Just like with the name Holland, the moment I committed to this name, I started hearing Zahra everywhere. Most notably, in Red, White and Royal Blue. Thank you, Casey McQuiston for the loan!

Hannah’s Song

Grace (Hannah)

I have changed Grace’s name back to Hannah and reverted to Grace at least six times. I’ve finally landed on Grace because I want her to relate to the biblical Hannah for her heartache, not because they have the same name.

Everson (Elkanah)

I’ve changed poor Everson’s name about twice as many times. How funny that Kai was Kai from Day One and sweet Everson has had many monikers. Part of it is probably due to the lack of clarity he has in my mind. I can see him, but his personality has sometimes evaded me. I’m revising this book right now and I hope a clear and present Everson is the result!

Penny (Peninnah)

This was another no-brainer. Please note: Penny is Everson’s sister (not his other wife!).

Penny’s children

Sons Quent, Walton, and Manth and daughters Leaf, Aeron, and Alys (if you know, you know!) If you don’t know, it’s okay to ask. 🐉

Leaves Waking

This is the name of the band that invites Grace to tour with them. I tripped over this word pairing when I was searching my brain for a song title. Something about it just made sense. Especially because the lead singer is River Ng. (See the last two letters?) Plus the whole nature reference. I dunno. Maybe corny but I’m happy with it.

River Ng (Eli the priest)

I wanted River/Eli to do more than just grant masculine “I’ll take it from here” vibes. So the first thing I did was strip Eli of his masculinity. River is nonbinary, half Chinese, and fiery hot—and very much into our girl Grace. I think you’ll love River when you meet them.

Natalie Alexandra

River’s wife and drummer for Leaves Waking got her name when I was thinking of pretty names for a pretty girl.

Big Josh and Josh (never Little Josh or Other Josh)

I’ve had many sets of friends with the same name and this just struck me as funny. Big Josh and Josh. Still cracks me up.

Reed

Some of my favorite people have this name. I hope they don’t mind my sticking the most minor character with it!

Drew/Max and Drew/Jessica

Grace’s best friends are a married couple who each call each other Drew. My best friend in high school and I called each other the same name. It’s always appealed to me to have people who genuinely love each other use the same name. Not a purposeful nod to Call Me By Your Name, but I thank André Aciman for a gorgeous book, just the same.

Grace’s sister

Grace’s sister is yet unnamed. If you have any suggestions, I’m open to them!

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Hello, my name is…